finish

Pronunciation

• IPA: /ˈfɪn.ɪʃ/^[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle English finisshen,^[2] borrowed from Old French feniss-, finiss-, the lengthened stem of fenir “to stop, finish, come to an end; to die” (modern finir),^[3][4][5] from Latin fīnīre (“to limit, set bounds; to put an end to”),^[3][5] from fīnis (“boundary, border; end”),^[3][5] the source of final and finite.^[4][2] Fīnis is of unknown origin, perhaps related to fīgere “to fix”.^[3][5] The French change from fenir to finir came under the influence of fin “end”.^[5] The noun is from the verb.^[5][3]

Earliest recorded meaning

“To bring to an end, come to the end of”: about 1350,^[6] before 1375 in Barnhart,^[5] the late 14th century in Etymonline.^[3] The intransitive sense, “to come to an end”, is from the mid-15th century.^[3]

Semantic evolution

“To bring to completion, make perfect” is from the first half of the 15th century,^[6][4] and “to use up, consume the rest of” from 1526.^[6] Johnson (1755) gave first “to bring to the end purposed; to complete”.^[7] “To kill, put an end to” is from 1755.^[3] The noun, “that which finishes or completes”, is from 1779, in a letter of Josiah Wedgwood,^[5][3][6] and “the end, the last stage” from 1790.^[3][6] The last coat of paint or plaster is a finish from 1823,^[6] and the quality of being finished or perfected from about 1805.^[6] Finish line is attested from 1873^[3] or 1899.^[6]

Timeline

• c. 1350 – to bring to an end.^[6]
• mid-15th century – to come to an end.^[3]
• 1526 – to use up.^[6]
• 1583 – finished, accomplished.^[5]
• 1755 – to kill.^[3]
• 1779 – noun, that which completes.^[5][3]
• 1790 – noun, the end.^[3][6]
• 1873 – finish line.^[3]

Modern meaning

Verb

1. To bring to an end; to complete.
2. To come to an end; to stop.
3. To eat, drink or use the rest of.
4. To give a final surface or texture to, as by varnishing.
5. To end a race or competition in a given position.
6. To kill or destroy; to ruin: the scandal finished him.

Noun

1. The end or last stage, especially of a race.
2. The surface or texture of something, such as wood or paint.
3. Something that completes; polish or refinement.

Word family

• finisher
• prefinish
• refinish
• nonfinishing
• finish line
• Garrison finish
• photo finish
• finishing school

Related words

• final
• finite
• infinite
• fine
• finance
• define
• confine

References

1. ^ Jones, Daniel (2011), Cambridge English Pronouncing Dictionary, 18th ed., ed. Peter Roach, Jane Setter and John Esling, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
2. ^ a b Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
4. ^ a b c Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon Press
5. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
6. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
7. ^ Johnson, Samuel (1755), A Dictionary of the English Language, London; 4th ed. 1773; Johnson's Dictionary Online, ed. Beth Rapp Young et al.